The Great Indoors: Tennessee caves adventures

“Without hesitation, Professor Littlebrook chose the eastern tunnel and the journey continued through a succession of arches appearing before them as if they were the aisles of a gothic cathedral.” – Jules Verne, Journey to the Center of the Earth.
In Tennessee, most of us are not big fans of the cold. Where to go? A movie theater is always the easy answer and a lot of fun, but more than likely you will be seeing what every other movie goer will be seeing this week. A mall? Most of us have seen enough of the mall last month. But what about adventure? What about the places that make Tennessee different from the rest of the country and world?

Middle and East Tennessee have what geographers call Karst Topography, and a lot of it, which in layman’s terms means caves and lots of them. Water has dissolved limestone creating openings in the topography. In the caves temperatures are anywhere from 55 to 60 degrees and humid from the coldest January to the hottest and most humid August afternoon.

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First some cave basics. Most visitors take walking tours. Wear comfortable shoes and clothing. But there are also wild cave tours. Here you wear shoes and clothes that you do not mind wearing ever again. And the tour is not for everyone such as the claustrophobic.

The wild caves tour at Cumberland Caverns requires crawling through spaces not much bigger than the overhead bin on an airplane. I fit as a 12-year-old Boy Scout. Two years ago I had to take the walking tour.

All of the caves on state property are closed due to the presence of white nose syndrome, a mysterious ailment killing bats. The thinking of the US Fish and Wildlife Service, and the State of Tennessee agrees, is to keep the bats in state caves from being disturbed. The bad news – bats love mosquitos as much as Tennesseans hate them and fewer bats could equal more mosquitos. The good news is white nose syndrome seems not to affect humans, so no worries about walking around the office after the trip to the Smokies with a white nose.
So head out this weekend. Unlock your inner Jules Verne and though you won’t be getting anywhere near the center of the earth, the true stories of moonshiners, Native American tribes and Civil War soldiers are as good as anything Verne could write. And the stalactites descend from the roof, stalagmites rise from the floor.

Adams : Bell Witch Cave- Closed in Winter. This cave is on the old John Bell property where legend says a ghost tormented and possibly killed him. 430 Keysburg Rd, Adams. http://www.bellwitchcave.com/
Blountville: Appalachian Caverns. In addition to a walking tour, there is also a “wild caves” tour in this attraction about fifteen minutes from the Tri Cities Airport. 420 Cave Hill Rd, Blountville. 423-323-2337. www.appacaverns.com
Bristol: Bristol Caverns: An attraction that was hundreds of millions of years in the making. 1157 Bristol Caverns, Bristol. 423-878-2011. www.bristolcaverns.com
Chattanooga: Ruby Falls, Heading down the elevator 260 feet, your ears pop like traveling up a skyscraper. Deep down below Lookout Mountain, the waterfalls make this probably the state’s most popular cave destination. 1720 South Scenic Highway, Chattanooga. 423-821-2544 www.rubyfalls.com
Raccoon Mountain Caverns, The Crystal Palace tour is a 45 minute walking tour but the Wild Caves Tour is also available. 319 West Hills Drive. Chattanooga. 423-821-9403 www.racoonmountain.com

McMinnville: Cumberland Caverns. Both a walking tour and a wild caves tour makes this a Middle Tennessee treasure. It also hosts bluegrass shows and a grand chandelier. 1437 Cumberland Caverns Rd. McMinville. 931-668-4396. www.cumberlandcaverns.com.
Sevierville: Forbidden Caverns. Closed for winter. 455 Blowing cave Road, Sevierville 865-453-5972
Sweetwater: Lost Sea. One could call it Tenne -Sea. A boat tour takes visitors through an underground sea and it has a wild caves tour in perhaps the most unusual cave tour anywhere. 140 Lost Sea Rd. Sweetwater. 423-337-6616. www.thelostsea.com
Townsend : Tuckaleechee Caverns- closed in Winter. 825 Cavern Road. 865-448-2274. www.tuckaleecheecaverns.com/